School psychologist Louis Przybylski wondered if he could get high-achieving African American students at John Glenn High School to listen to him.

He had looked at class rankings for 11th grade and found only a few African American males in the top 75 students. He decided they could do better and invited them to join his group. His goal was to empower them to want to be on top academically.

“Initially when I got the call to come down, I didn’t know why,” Andre Brown said. “I didn’t know there were six of us in the top 75. But through this group I’ve grown a lot, mostly through connecting with the people in this group.”

The group is the Male African American Students, which meets each week with Przybylski to share their thoughts and opinions, explore current events and get a push to do better academically.

“He pushes us a lot more,” Darnell Zachery said. “If it wasn’t for this group, I would have taken blow-off classes my senior year. Instead I’m taking AP classes. I had a 3.0 grade-point average last year and I’ve got it up to 3.6 this year.”

“I was really shocked about being approached; I looked around and realized I’m really smart,” Jade Herring said. “I don’t do AP classes, I just work really hard. I’m not super smart, although I have a 3.8 GPA.”

The MAAS group proved popular with boys, so much so that African American girls asked for their own group. So Przybylski formed a Female African American Students group. This is the third year from the two groups and together they number about 30 students who have discovered that it’s OK to be African American and successful in school.

Success in school

And their success is reflected in the universities they will be attending in the fall — MSU, UM, Illinois, EMU, University of Pennsylvania, Duke, Carnegie Mellon, Rice, Emory, Vanderbilt, Kettering, University of Florida, Washington University (Mo.), Northwood and Findlay — and the offers of substantial scholarships.

“This group is the reason I came to school today,” Cynne Gones said. “There’s a stereotype about being a black student at Glenn. These are people I can relate to, they keep me going. The one thing I feel better about is knowing I’m not alone.”

The discussions are varied — from current events like the deaths of young black men like Trayvon Martin in Florida and Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., to famous African Americans like Dr. Ben Carson, who is now a candidate for president of the United States, and the late poet Maya Angelou. They explore diversity in America, their culture and the challenges they face while providing support for each other.

“They have given me an opportunity to learn more about myself and motivate me to do better in school,” added Tomea Graham. “I’m the first person in my family to go to college. My grandfather pushed me the most. I applied and got scholarships to go to EMU. My dream school is MSU, but I don’t have the finances.”

The openness of the groups gives students the opportunity to express themselves. Jalen Sims said that when he comes to MAAS, he knows “I can express how I feel and I don’t get judged.”

“You get to hear opinions, the things we talk about are not what you talk about if you’re from a different background,” added Aaron Tatum.

“We can give our own perspectives on things; I can see their experiences and learn from them,” Andre Cervera said. “I can learn from them and be more sympathetic.”

Need for role models

For Xavier Edwards, MAAS has given African American students a foundation to succeed. There are only five African American staffers at John Glenn, none of which are men, so the male students don’t have someone, a role model, “to look up to.”

“You go into class and see students who want to succeed because they see someone who has,” he said. “That’s important especially for those who don’t have a male figure in their life. They need that.”

The students’ success also comes with challenges and stereotypes. Kimari Johson said she had a chip on her shoulder, but thanks to FAAS, she feels she now represents young African American people.

“I don’t live in Inkster, I live in a nice house,” Alexis Gardner added. “My dad doesn’t sell drugs.”

“I feel I have to compete for everything. When I got to this group, I felt I didn’t have to,” Camille Hollins added.

Since the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., the rallying cry around the country is that black lives matter. However, after talking about such incidents, the Glenn students have decided that all lives matter and support unity.

With the students heading off to college, Przybylski is interested in seeing what it will like for them in the communities they join.

“One of the purposes of these groups is to give them voices to be heard,” he said. “The biggest issue among these groups is accountability. They have energized me. I feel that, in my career, at age 59, I’m at the top of my game and they’re holding me accountable.”